Beam and lock strip



1m 20, 1070 R; F, WISSLER 3,400,800

00m AND Lock STRIP June l' INVENTOR, Ay E M//SSQ United States Patent O 3,490,800 BEAM AND LOCK STRIP Ray F. Wissler, I.O. Box 94, Koloa Kauai, Hawaii 96756 Filed June 1, 1967, Ser. N0. 642,873 Int. Cl. F16b 1/00, 5/00, 7/00 U.S. Cl. 287-189.36 Claims ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE The patent describes a beam intended for use in construction which is generally square or rectangular in crosssection, is slotted longitudinally on two or rnore sides and contains pins inserted transversely through it. These pins pass through each of the slots at regular intervals and at such a depth from the face of the beam so that they are capable of engaging a key device which locks individual beams together into larger beams and/ or locks panels or other structural members rigidly to the beams.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION The eld of the present invention pertains to members for use in the construction of walls, partitions, buildings and the like.

The prefabrication of components which can be assembled into buildings and other structures has long been a need in the construction industry. In general, components of this type are intended to facilitate the mass production of components at a common site. The components are thereafter assembled at the building site, ideally with a minimum of labor. Many and varied Prefabricated building components have been proposed in the past. The present invention is concerned with improved prefabricated components for use in the construction of buildings.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION Briey, the present invention comprises a beam which is longitudinally slotted on two or more sides and contains pins inserted transversely through it and spanning the slots at regularly spaced intervals at such a depth from the face of the beam as to be capable of engaging a locking device having corresponding spaced slots therein to lock with the pins and join individual beams together into larger beams, and/or engage the edges of panels or other structural members by the locking of the pins with similarly spaced slots therein to form walls, roofs and the like.

The beam is preferably an extruded multi-tube configuration of square cross-section. The beam is normally formed by an integral extrusion of plastics such as rigid polyvinyl chloride or other materials, including metals and liber-reinforced plastic, and is cut into convenient lengths. Obviously, beams of standard lengths and various denominations can be cut to any desired length. An important feature of the design of the beam is that a wire or strand of high tensile strength can be inserted therein to run longitudinally through it at one or more of the four corners. The wire or strand is imbedded in the body of the beam or passes through openings in the beam, and is rmly fastened at each end of the beam to give added strength against bending moments. The beam contains longitudinal openings therein to reduce weight and minimize the materials required.

Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide a novel beam for use in construction.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a novel beam which can be locked together with a locking device to form larger beams and/or other structures.

It is also an object of the invention to provide a prefabricated building component which can be easily 3,490,800 Patented Jan. 20, 1970 ICC formed from inexpensive materials, is light weight, and still has great strength.

These and other objects and advantages of the present invention will become apparent from the more detailed description which follows, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS In the drawing, FIGURE 1 isa perspective View of one embodiment of the beam in the present invention.

FIGURE 2 shows a sectional view of two of the beams locked together with a locking device.

FIGURE 3 is a perspective view of a length of the locking device used for locking individual beams together.

FIGURE 4 is another perspective view of a shorter locking device used to lock the beams together.

FIGURE 5 shows the use of the locking device of FIGURE 4 when it is engaged with the pins of the beam.

FIGURE 6 shows the beam locked to a panel having an edge portion which has the locking-type key construction.

FIGURE 7 is a sectional view of another embodiment of the beam in the present invention.

Turning to the drawing in greater detail, FIGURE l shows the beam 10 having openings 12, 14, 16 and 18 running longitudinally along its length. Pins 20 and 22 extend laterally through the beam and at a spaced interval therefrom. Pins 24 and 26 run laterally through the beam but in a direction which is perpendicular to pins 20 and 22. The reinforcing wires or strands are indicated as 28, 30, 32 and 34. The locking device 36 is provided with uniformly spaced curved slots 38 and uniformly spaced oppositely curved slots-40 adapted to cornmunicate with the individual pins 20 and 42, as shown in FIGURE 2, and thereby lock beam 10 to beam 44.

As is shown in FIGURE 4, the locking device may also be a short strip 46 which is also equipped with slots 48. This short strip may be utilized in the fashion indicated Ain FIGURE 5.

Still another embodiment of the present invention is shown in FIGURE 6 in which panel 50 is equipped with edge portion 52 which has the slots therein in much the fashion as does the strip-type locking device 36 shown in FIGURE 3. In this way, it is possible to not only join together beams as shown in FIGURE 2, but also beams with building panels.

FIGURE 7 shows a modified form of the beam construction of this invention in which there are keyholeshaped slots 54 for receiving the locking devices. The longitudinal openings 56 reduce materials requirements and weight, and in this case the reinforcing wires 58 can be run through these openings. The central longitudinal opening 60 further eliminates unnecessary material and weight, and can be used as a passage for electrical c011- duits, wiring, plumbing, and the like.

As will be immediately apparent to those skilled in the art, the beam and locking construction of the present invention is adapted to the construction of a wide variety of buildings and is very flexible in that the beams and locking devices can be made of varying lengths and dimensions. Accordingly, the beam and locking construction of the present invention will nd wide use in the construction industry.

In FIGURE 5, the beam is in a vertical position (as in a wall stud) with the near and far faces of the beam transversed by pins riveted through the beam near the two faces and opposite each other on those two faces. On the left and right faces there also are pins riveted through transversely at the same distance center-to-center, but spaced midway between the aforementioned front- -3 and-back face pins. When one beam is set up and a lock strip is inserted into the slot, the lock strip can be manually started into its locking position. By tapping the strip on its end it will snap into a locked position. The

beam that is to be joined to this beam can also be manually started into a locked position by slipping the slot over the protruding half of the locking strip. This second beam also can be locked into position by tapping it until the beam and the lock strip snap.

The design of the lock strip serves to join the beams to form girders, beams, studs and rafters. It is also important in using the beam elements to build scaffolding, ladders, temporary stages, etc. However, the lock strip design in conjunction with the slot and pins is still more important in the concept of a complete construction system. The principle of the lock strip is applicable in such a system to the locking together of panels for floors, walls and roofs together with beams to form conventional structures that can be knocked down and moved for re-assembly on other sites. Module units of doors, windows and partitions would be prefabricated to be joined by the lock strip principle-either the lock strip itself or the lock strip element constructed as protruding edges of these module panels.

The longitudinal chamber within the beam, included partly to lighten the weight Without sacrificing a great deal of strength, has several functions. One is that it can receive snap-on battens of several basic designs. One such batten seals joints on roofs. Another merely covers the joints and provides weatherproofing on exterior Walls. A third type is a decorative hatten for interior walls. These snap-on battens are simple and foolproof when designed to be used with the hollowedout longitudinal chamben I claim:

1. The combination of a beam-type construction member comprising a beam of polygonal cross-section which is slotted longitudinally along at least one of its sides, and an elongated locking device locked in side-by-side relationship to said beam, said locking device having a radially extending flange portion provided with slots at regular longitudinal intervals, said beam having pins disposed transversely through it and spanning said slot in said beam at regular longitudinal intervals and at such a depth from an adjacent face of the beam as to be engaging the slots in said flange portion.

2. The combination of claim 1 in which said beam is square in cross-section.

3. The combination of claim 1 in which the main body of said beam is an extruded integral structure.

-4. The combination of claim 1 wherein said beam has a wire or strand of high tensile strength running longitudinally through it at each of its four corners to give added strength against bending moment.

5. The combination of claim 1 wherein said beam is longitudinally slotted along all of its sides.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 843,456 2/1907 Higbee 287-189.36 1,019,966 3/1912 Kennedy 287-18936 2,075,633 3/1937 Anderegg 52-722 FOREIGN PATENTS 1,991 2/ 1915 Great Britain.

RAMON S. BRITTS, Primary Examiner U.S. Cl. XR. 

